Top Bollywood Actors Overseas: May 2016

It won’t be long before we include the younger generation of actors in our ’overseas’ ranking. Actors like Sidharth Malhotra ($7 million – Kapoor & Sons), Arjun Kapoor ($4.1 million – Ki & Ka), Varun Dhawan ($2.4 million – Humpty Sharma Ki Dulhania) are gaining popularity in the overseas markets. They are already ahead of older actors like Ajay Devgn and Saif Ali Khan, and could soon challenge stars like Akshay Kumar.

The good news is, Ranveer Singh has become the first young actor to ‘deserve’ a place among the more established stars in the overseas markets. The ‘Bajirao Mastani’ star makes a smashing entry straight into the Top 5, with the super-success of films like Bajirao Mastani, Ram Leela, Dil Dhadakne Do and even Gunday considering the genre of the film.

Interesting times ahead, because the younger actors are most certainly making their presence felt and we have 4-5 of them now! The industry got Hrithik in 2000, followed by Ranbir in 2007. But the 2010 – 2012 period has been excellent.

Top Bollywood Actors in the Overseas Markets: As of May 2016.

• The list below would be based on the gross box office collections of an actor’s last five movies. To keep the comparison fair, all figures are in US dollars.
• Only lead roles would be considered. Cameos, special appearances and guest appearances won’t be taken under consideration. Non-commercial and art films like ‘Dhobi Ghat’ have also not been considered.
• Dated movies that released before 2007 have not been considered.
• We have only included 9 actors in the list. The likes of Arjun Kapoor, Varun Dhawan and Sidharth Malhotra, with a couple of solid overseas performers behind them, are emerging as stars to watch out for. Currently, it’s unfair to include them in the list. Ranveer makes an entry with the 2016 update.

Rank 1 Aamir Khan: Aamir Khan has finally ended Shahrukh Khan’s 2-decade long overseas dominance. PK is the highest grosser of all time and it has achieved several other overseas records. It’s the only Indian film to collect more than Rs 200 crore and Rs 300 crore from the overseas markets alone. It’s also the only film to collect more than Rs 100 crore in a single country outside India. The China business of PK crossed the 100 crore mark. Aamir’s Dhoom 3 is the only film to cross the $30 million and $40 million mark. The superstar now has a loyal overseas fan-following which extends to countries like Japan and China, something that no other actor in the country has achieved before. Yes, Rajnikanth does have a strong following in Japan, but Aamir is the only known Indian actor in China.

• PK – $47.2 million
• Dhoom 3 – $31.1 million
• Talaash – $9.1 million
• 3 Idiots – $25.4 million
• Ghajini – $7.8 million
• Total – $120.6 million (average $24.12 million per film)

Rank 2 Shah Rukh Khan: An actor who has dominated the overseas markets like no other star in the history of Indian Cinema, Shahrukh Khan remains the biggest crowd puller outside India in markets like North America, UK, Australia, Gulf and several other countries. His lowest grossers are far higher than the highest grossers of most other actors. His consistency too remains unmatched, as some of his not-so-acclaimed films that are not released during favourable periods, are record-breaking. He is also the only actor whose last 5 films have all crossed the $10 million mark overseas. The key for Shahrukh to extend regain his overseas dominance is to have films that will perform well in markets like China and Japan.

Unfortunately though, FAN is likely to be his lowest grosser in a long long time. Even lower than films like Happy New Year and Jab Tak Hai Jaan.

• FAN – $10.5 million (expected)
• Dilwale – $25.7 million
• Happy New Year – $17.1 million
• Chennai Express – $19.5 million
• Jab Tak Hai Jaan – $13.1 million
• Total – $85.9 million (average $17.18 million per film)

Rank 3 Salman Khan: In the last 5 years, Salman has consistently dominated the domestic box office, but none of his films could go on to match Aamir and SRK’s biggest grossers. Bajrangi Bhaijaan was a game-changer for the superstar. Not only has the Kabir Khan directed film doubled the collections of his previous highest grosser (Kick), but Bajrangi Bhaijaan is now the 3rd highest overseas grosser of all time. If the film does well in other markets in phase 2 of its overseas release, then Bajrangi Bhaijaan could go on to be the 2nd highest grosser of all time. Prem Ratan Dhan Payo was expected to be earth-shattering overseas, because it was the Salman-Sooraj combo that opened the overseas market with their all-time classic ‘Hum Aapke Hain Kaun’. It wasn’t to be, PRDP finished under $15 million.

• Prem Ratan Dhan Payo – $14.7 million
• Bajrangi Bhaijaan – $28.8 million
• Kick – $11.6 million
• Jai Ho – $6.1 million
• Dabangg 2 – $8.5 million
• Total – $69.7 million (average $13.94 million per film)

Rank 4 Hrithik Roshan: The success of Bajrangi Bhaijaan has widened the gap between Hrithik and Salman. There wasn’t much to choose between the two before the latest Salman Khan blockbuster. In fact, Hrithik was the No 2 star (after SRK) for most of the 2000s. His market hasn’t grown, but Aamir and Salman have upped their game. Mohenjo Daro has the potential to be a huge grosser.

• Bang Bang – $13.1 million
• Krrish 3 – $8.8 million
• Agneepath – $6.1 million
• Zindagi Naa Milegi Dobara – $7.21 million
• Guzaarish – $3.22 million
• Total – $38.43 million (average $7.69 million per film)

Rank 5 Ranveer Singh: A smashing entry, straight into the Top 5 for the most promising star of the future. He has leap-frogged actors like Akshay Kumar, Ranbir Kapoor and Ajay Devgn. His films have been consistently performing well in the overseas markets too, which is why he has become the first young actor to make it to the overseas ranking.

With Aditya Chopra’s Befikre scheduled to release next, Ranveer will continue to make his presence felt in the overseas market. He could challenge a established start like Hrithik, which is a massive achievement in itself!

A point to be noted here. Ranveer is also ranked No 5 in the Top 15 Actors in India, which is unbelievably huge for an actor who made his debut less than 6 years ago in 2010. A lot of people will be quick to point out that a huge chunk of the credit should go to Sanjay Leela Bhansali for giving him two of his biggest domestic and overseas grossers, but Bhansali signed him because he saw potential and Ranveer has more than delivered in the acting department.

• Bajirao Mastani – $15 million
• Dil Dhadakne Do – $6.8 million
• Kill Dil – $2.0 million
• Gunday – $3.5 million
• Ram Leela – $7.9 million
• Total – $35.2 million (average $7.04 million per film)

Rank 6 Ranbir Kapoor: Bombay Velvet and Besharam were huge disasters, but Tamasha has done reasonably well overseas. His career is going nowhere at the moment, but he has big films with big directors. Ae Dil Hai Mushkil will improve his standing in the overseas market, because Karan Johar films have a huge following in the traditional markets. If the film with Rajkumar Hirani clicks, sky will be the limit for Ranbir. It’ll be a interesting to see the career progression of Ranveer and Ranbir in next few years.

• Tamasha – $6.2 million
• Bombay Velvet – $2.0 million
• Besharam – $2.9 million
• Yeh Jawaani Hai Deewani – $10.4 million
• Barfi! – $5.9 million
• Total – $27.4 million (average $5.48 million per film)

Rank 7 Akshay Kumar: There was a time when Akshay films would do very well overseas – Singh Is Kinng (7.1 million), Housefull 2 ($6 million), Heyy Baby ($4.4 million) and several others were hugely successful films. Back in 2007 – 2008, Akshay movies used to fare better than Aamir, Salman and Hrithik’s. But his last few films have under-performed big time. However, the actor has made a strong comeback with Airlift this year, it’s the third highest grosser so far (until April 2016) after Fan and Kapoor & Sons.

• Airlift – $6.5 million
• Singh Is Bling – $4.2 million
• Brothers – $3.7 million
• Gabbar Is Back – $2.9 million
• Baby – $2.5 million
• Total – $19.8 million (average $3.96 million per film)

Rank 8 Saif Ali Khan: Saif’s latest release Happy Ending has fared poorly in the overseas markets. The film has collected $1 million in its opening weekend, but the success of Race 2 and Cocktail ensures that Saif continues to hold on to the 6th spot. Happy Ending should collect around $1.5 – 1.75 million by the end of its run as it has dropped all over on Monday.

• Happy Ending – $1.7 million
• Humshakals - $2.7 million
• Bullet Raja- $1.5 million
• Race 2 - $6.4 million
• Cocktail - $4.4 million
• Total – $16.7 million (average $3.34 million per film)

Rank 9 Ajay Devgn: Like India, Action Jackson failed in the overseas markets too. Singham Returns did fairly well. Son of Sardaar was a decent hit. He has big films scheduled to release in the next couple of years like Shivaay and Sons of Sardaar.

• Drishyam – $2.1 million
• Action Jackson – $1.7 million
• Singham Returns – $4.2 million
• Satyagraha – $2.6 million
• Himmatwala – $1.4 million
• Total – $12 million (average $2.4 million per film)

Top 10 Overseas Grossers

• 1. PK – $47.2 million
• 2. Dhoom 3 – $ 31.1 million
• 3. Bajrangi Bhaijaan – $ 28.8 million
• 4. Dilwale – $25.7 million
• 5. 3 Idiots – $ 25.4 million
• 6. My Name Is Khan – $23.7 million
• 7. Chennai Express - $ 19.5 million
• 8. Happy New Year – $ 17.1 million
• 9. Bajirao Mastani – $15 million
• 10. Prem Ratan Dhan Payo – $14.7 million